Rangers St Mirren finished 2-0 in the visitors' favour at The Marbill Coaches Stadium, Ryan Naderi converting a penalty on 18 minutes and Dan Neil adding a deflected second just after the hour. The result leaves Derek McInnes's side one point behind Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic, having played the same number of fixtures.
Rangers St Mirren: Naderi and Neil settle it
Naderi, described by the source report as in-form, struck from the spot after James Penrice was fouled, a decision Sky Sports co-commentator James McFadden called "softer than soft". Neil's deflected effort arrived just past the hour and extended Rangers' unbeaten run in all competitions to 12 games.
Rangers had drawn their previous two Premiership away games, against Dundee and Hearts, results the report says had blemished their title challenge. Against St Mirren they avoided a third slip, and McInnes later argued his team could have added to the scoreline.
The penalty decision that split the co-commentators
The spot-kick became the talking point of the afternoon. Chris Sutton said Penrice had played referee Nick Walsh "like a piccolo" to win it.
"I think we all agree that it was the wrong decision. There has to be sufficient contact. James Penrice has played Nick Walsh like a piccolo."
Penrice, speaking to Sky Sports, disputed the reading of the incident.
"I've not seen it back. I'm being told it is a penalty, it isn't a penalty. I don't know. I feel the contact and he dangled a leg. He kicked us, I couldn't get the ball."
Sutton responded to that interview by suggesting Penrice did not sound certain himself.
"He sounded pretty guilty. I'm not sure he was convinced it was a penalty. It was an admission from him that it wasn't really [a penalty]."
Kris Boyd offered a shorter verdict on the debate over how much contact is enough.
"It doesn't matter if it's a soft boiled egg or a hard boiled egg, it's still a boiled egg."
Derek McInnes on Rangers' control
The Rangers manager spoke to Sky Sports after the win and focused on how his side managed the game rather than the penalty controversy.
"I thought we deserved to win. When we were good, we were very good. We mixed the game up. St Mirren are a good team, they test your organisation. We took the game away from them by controlling things. When you get the second goal away from home it takes the game away from them. We could have added to the 2-0 scoreline and been a bit more clinical. We're glad to get out with the three points."
What the result means for the title race
Rangers are now within a point of Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premiership, with both clubs on the same number of fixtures played. Celtic can restore a four-point lead when they host Kilmarnock at Celtic Park on Sunday, before the international break pauses the league again.
Analysis: the gap is narrow but conditional, because Celtic hold a game in hand in effect only until Sunday's fixture is played. Rangers' recent away draws are the reason the margin is not already closed, and the pattern of this match — a contested penalty followed by a deflected second — offered little evidence either way about how the run-in will unfold.
The source report was published by skysports.com.
